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I’m thrilled to report that my first free webinar last week attracted over 50 participants and that every space available for my upcoming program sold.
In my own business and the businesses of my colleagues, and what I see in the world at large, we must keep trying out different offerings and seeing what works.
We’re throwing spaghetti against the wall to see what sticks. Boiling that water. Dropping in the pasta. Tossing it at the wall. Noticing what happens, then rinsing and repeating. This is the new normal.
When money was more plentiful, there were resources to try everything. But now, everyone is more conservative, so businesses are out there looking for the sweet spot for their audience.
Groupon is an example. A woman in the business-building course I took last spring offered her services at a fraction of their cost using that method. She got dozens of takers to try out her feng shui talents. Whether or not they ‘stuck’ as real clients at full fee was yet to be seen.
My son told me that Bonobos, a retail clothing site he loves, offers deals on twitter for limited time periods.
My sponsors for last week’s lunch talk experimented in their contract with me so that the risk was divided up amongst all of us. It paid off, and we all walked away satisfied. This is an era of experimentation, re-creation and re-defining success.
I’m still offering 1:1 coaching, Mastermind Groups, my Remarkable Women’s Network events and speaking engagements. Using the metaphor of the slot machine, these are coming up with two dollar signs and a cherry. The results of my first webinar offer created the ding-ding-ding jackpot I’d been striving for. I’ll continue to have the other pieces of my business model, but my attention will be on expanding the webinar classes in the near future.
Photo permission Katie Settel Photography
“Oh, hello Oprah. Yes, can I call you back? I’m in the middle of my Come As You’ll Be event.”
I explained to the assembled superstars at my networking event that now, in the year 2016, I have limited my coaching practice to the most successful women entrepreneurs in the country–Oprah, Michelle Obama (now operating her global organic gardening business), and Lady Gaga who wanted a Mastermind Group to support her in her continuing meteoric rise to the top–to name a few. Oops, I shouldn’t be breaking their anonymity…
The event that took place at Denise DiGrigoli’s Troy Fine Art was a blast into the future. As each woman business owner walked into 2016, the paparazzi flashed her picture, and she was welcomed into that year. As we went around the room and introduced ourselves, the smiles got broader. I asked the prominent lawyer in attendance to not be so shy about her cover article for Time magazine, or that our retreat leader at least tell us a tidbit about her event with the Dalai Lama.
We broke up into smaller, more intimate groups to bring the evening to a more meaningful level of conversation. I asked the women to talk about what steps they had taken to achieve their great success, what advice they would give their younger selves (say, in the year 2011) and what was the most important thing they learned on the journey. The responses were uplifting, informative, and in one particular case hysterically funny. I wish you could’ve been there.
Sandy Sergeant, owner of CT Caring Solutions, has been leading mission trips to third world countries for many years. At my Come As You’ll Be evening, we celebrated Sandy’s Nobel Prize win. You can see her response. She summed up the night in a beautiful testimonial she’s allowing me to share:
I would like to thank you for that innovative meeting on Wednesday, both Sandra and I enjoyed it immensely, it was like actually living out your dream, in a moment of time. How fascinating, It made everything so real, and breaking up in the small groups was even more effective. Being there was truly a blessing. Looking, forward to participating in your upcoming mastermind group.
Our Nobel Prize Winner (photo by Katie Settel Photography)
On Monday a coaching client mentioned feeling inadequate to put herself in front of high-end clientele . The next day I heard the same fear articulated by another woman I was coaching who also had that “less than” thing going on. Then, over lunch with a colleague yesterday same story again.
So, what started as an “hmmmm” on Monday, took on trend status Tuesday and proved to be an epidemic by Thursday. Definitely a blog topic for today!
I’m traveling to Florida next week to be with good friends and have also scheduled an appointment while I’m down there to meet with the President of an acclaimed art college to offer a collaborative event. My gremlins are SCREAMING: “Why would he be interested in YOU?” “He has millions of alums who can do what you do in high heels and backwards.” “What could you possibly offer that he doesn’t already have enough of?”
Do you need me to share more to qualify for this sorority? I didn’t think so…
Fortunately, I participate in a spiritual fellowship every Friday morning and heard just what I needed today to address this issue: the fear that lies beneath our desires.
I believe that my intuitive hit to contact this gentleman, based on a quote of his I read in the NYTimes awhile back, was the spark of God in me. And that my gremlins represent FEAR and are combated only by action.
What’s on the other side of this impostor/less-than/fear-of-success syndrome is faith, success and the unknown. It used to be more comfortable for me (us) to wallow in the familiar, icky as it may be. I can’t do that any more.
The way I get beyond my saboteurs, head games and paralysis is to name it and claim it, to ask for help and to do the next right thing. I pick up the phone, describe what’s going on to a caring friend, and describe the action I’m going to take on my behalf. It has worked every time I’ve done this and is the underpinning for my success to date.
The fear doesn’t go away. I keep doing scarier and cooler things in my business. But the muscle I’m flexing to overcome the fear is growing stronger every time I use it.
…Mastermind Group member Nikki Bates (see 11/10 post) recently sold a piece of her jewelry for close to $10,000. We track goals of each participant from when they enter my group until the final meeting. One of her earliest goals this session was to create a show-stopper–a piece that she creatively and joyfully designed without budget consideration. That was the necklace that sold.
When I was exhibiting my art I always had a show-stopper to attract attention to my booth, to woo that special shopper who wanted something totally unique and to expand my range. Also, when you have a piece that is 5-10 times your normal price point, it creates a different perspective for the buyer. When there’s a $750 brooch available, the ones priced at $125 seem far more reasonable by comparison.
It’s always a good idea when pricing your goods and services to have options for your buyers. That’s why I have offers like my Dream Peek Experience which is a stand-alone service (one hour, with a 15 minute follow-up call within 30 days) all the way to a six-month commitment for one-on-one coaching. The prices range from $275 – $2400.
Maybe I should have my own show-stopper for my coaching services: A Day with Jane–$5000. Any takers?!
I had the opportunity to speak for WBDC Thursday night, November 13. My daughter Laura joined me and took photos (as seen here). My talk consisted of lessons learned during my 30+ years as an entrepreneur mostly the difficult way, by failing first and doing it differently. I also closely watched those who I deemed more successful than I and imitated their model.
As the audience listened to me they realized that the road to success is not sequential, smooth or pre-paved. Each of us business owners trailblaze our own path. My stories have a lot of humor, humility, judgment (usually wrong, then amended) and aha’s.
The first question asked after my presentation was about the economy and what to do in the current situation. “Forge ahead!” is my mantra these days. “Do whatever it takes.”
The most important thing is to use your gifts. Many colleagues and I have been able to keep our calendars booked and bank accounts steady with clients and orders and also fit in occasional pro bono bookings, like this talk. Others may offer special, limited-time discounts as my energy healer has for any clients who book before Thanksgiving. I recommend offering sample sessions or donating your goods or services to keep you and your business in action mode.
When you’re in the act of creation, whatever is happening in the economy will have less of an impact on you than if you’re only focusing on the fear of what’s next. Do something!
I loved talking to this group. I’m always energized by sharing what I know. See!
I had the privilege of visiting two open houses this past weekend. Successful Mastermind Group clients invited me to their events, both of which were beautifully mounted and exciting to witness.
Carrie Wittenstein, at right with her sons, came to my group with an idea to create products with a philosophy of passing along kindness. She envisioned developing postcards and t-shirts with her message. Take a look at Carrie’s Woudn’t It Be Nice? site to see how she expanded the idea, the b-nice projects she’s created and order some cool stuff while you’re there. Part of Carrie’s vision is to give back, which is exactly what she does when you purchase a Wouldn’t It Be Nice t-shirt or sweatshirt. A donation of $5 is given to her favorite charitable organization when you do.
Carrie’s event was Friday evening. On Saturday I had the privilege of visiting the Loft Artists Association in Stamford, CT where my client Nikki Bates–goldsmith extraordinaire–participated in their open studio weekend.
You’ll have to go to Nikki’s site to see how truly exquisite her jewelry is. When I walked into her studio, a goal she established during one of our sessions, it took my breath away. There stood Nikki looking every inch the successful artist and businesswoman surrounded by her immaculate studio (she swears she cleaned up for company!).
Her showcase was filled to the brim with magnificent gems mounted with style and craftsmanship that is unique to Nikki. In addition, she was being assisted by her mother and mother-in-law. How lucky is she to have two loving women who believe in her so much they lend their time and energy in support!
I came away from these two visits feeling reinforced in my mission to lead remarkable women to their own definitions of success.
Driving into downtown Westport I passed two antique stores in a row on the Saugatuck River. “Hmmm,” I thought “they must know their market and can be located where there’s not much parking.” Antiques stores don’t require the volume of spaces, say, that Costco needs. I also knew, in that moment, that I am not their customer.
Since I filter everything through the eyes of an entrepreneur, coach and blogger, I leapt to an “aha” for myself. I don’t intend that every person I meet–i.e. passenger that drives by the antique stores–needs to hire me. Like those shops, I only want well-qualified prospects taking an interest.
The antique stores and I all want customers who need our products and services. Our job is to locate ourselves physically through bricks and mortar in a prime location, or virtually by optimizing for search engines. Anyone looking for a coach or speaker who specializes in women entrepreneurs, small business owners and success needs to see those signposts that will lead to my services.
In this digital era, our location, location, location has morphed into SEO, SEO, SEO – search engine optimization. As I’ve mentioned before, I’m in the generation of digital immigrants. I’m on the learning curve of adding keywords to my website and blogging so that my market can find me. It’s challenging and exciting–especially when I get found.
When you think of me, what words come to mind regarding my services? I’d love your comments.
When I wrote my book, Soul Proprietor: 101 Lessons from a Lifestyle Entrepreneur in 2001, I had a sense of what it meant to be a lifestyle entrepreneur. But not a definition that rolled off my tongue. I talked about the bottom line being more than simply a dollar sign, about loving what you do and about your work being a reflection of your life rather than vice versa.
(Click here to purchase your copy.)
I recently heard two women business owners talk about their decidely un-lifestyle entrepreneurial business. It was at a Ladies Who Launch event in Fairfield, CT. They created a very successful company for a sole (not soul) purpose–to sell it. They differentiated themselves from lifestyle entrepreneurs whom they defined as follows:
- Lifestyle entrepreneurs create their own way to make income, often doing something they’re passionate about.
- Lifestyle entrepreneurs strive to grow what they have created.
- Their intention is to have their lifestyle business support them for the rest of their lives.
- They have no intention of getting venture capital investors for the purpose of selling their company.
The second bullet point is not exclusive to lifestyle entrepreneurs. Every business owner wants to grow what they have, but the end goals are different. My business goals match up with the bullet points they discussed. I loved the clarity and would choose this way of life any day of the week.
On my morning walk recently I saw a fancy sports car in a neighbor’s driveway. Its bumper sticker said: The older I get, the faster I was.
I filter pretty much everything I see, hear and do through the senses of an entrepreneur so I thought about how that applied to me and my clients. Since I’ve completely closed down the art part of my business, I can say with full confidence that it was an enormous success–always profitable, highly publicized, nationally recognized with tons of customers. The truth is, while I was in it, I NEVER referred to myself as a success.
